Sanskrit
सक्ताः कर्मण्यविद्वांसो यथा कुर्वन्ति भारत । कुर्याद्विद्वांस्तथासक्तश्चिकीर्षुर्लोकसङ्ग्रहम् ॥
saktāḥ karmaṇy avidvāṃso yathā kurvanti bhārata kuryād vidvāṃs tathāsaktaś cikīrṣur lokasaṅgraham
Translation
As the ignorant act from attachment to action, O Bhârata, so should the wise act without attachment, desiring the welfare of the world.
Annie Besant · The Bhagavad-Gita, translated by Annie Besant (4th ed., 1922) — Wikisource · Public Domain
Explanation
A clean summary verse, restating the whole argument since verse 20 in one balanced sentence: same action, opposite motive — attachment for the unlearned, lokasangraha for the wise. It functions as a hinge before verse 26 turns to the practical question of how the wise should behave around the unlearned they’re being contrasted with here. The symmetry is exact and deliberate: identical outward conduct, so that the wise remain legible as models, but with the inner grip on the fruit released. This is why karma-yoga can be taught by example (BG 3.26) rather than by argument.
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Word by word
- saktāḥ karmaṇy avidvāṃsoसक्ताः कर्मण्य् अविद्वांसो
- the unwise, attached to action (saktāḥ + karmaṇi + avidvāṃsaḥ)
- yathā kurvanti bhārataयथा कुर्वन्ति भारत
- act as they do, O Bhārata (yathā + kurvanti + bhārata)
- kuryād vidvāṃs tathāsaktaśकुर्याद् विद्वांस् तथासक्तश्
- so should the wise act, unattached (kuryāt + vidvān + tathā-asaktaḥ)
- cikīrṣur lokasaṅgrahamचिकीर्षुः लोकसङ्ग्रहं
- desiring the welfare of the world (cikīrṣuḥ + loka-saṅgraham)
Commentary
Site Commentary
What’s easy to miss in a summary verse this clean is what it doesn’t ask for: a different action. The wise are told to perform the very same tasks the unlearned perform, driven by lokasangraha instead of attachment — meaning nothing about the wise person’s conduct would look different to an outside observer. The whole discipline this chapter has been building lives entirely on the inside, invisible from outside.
Original commentary written for this site · © Amit Singh — original commentary
Concepts
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Lessons
Personal
- Your outward routine can stay exactly the same while your reason for doing it changes entirely — the discipline this verse points to isn't about doing different things, it's about doing the same things for a reason that isn't self-serving.
Professional
- Two people can complete an identical task — one chasing credit, one genuinely serving the team's outcome — and look indistinguishable from outside; don't assume matching behavior means matching motive, in yourself or in a teammate.
Family & Social
- You can keep doing the same chores or favors for a partner or family member while quietly shifting why you do them, away from obligation and toward genuine care — the visible act doesn't have to change for the relationship to.
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